The Meade ETX90: Excellent optics in a very small package!
The ETX is a small, light 90mm aperture Maksutov telescope/spotting scope of good quality. It can easily handle magnifications up to 40-50x per inch of aperture and will show good detail on the Moon and even some planets. Terrestrially, it is powerful so a low-power eyepiece (32-35mm) for 39x is a must-have for first looks. The small finderscope works well as a pointer for the main instrument, but is close to the main tube so it takes getting used to. Because of the magnification this scope is capable of, a good stable tripod (not cheap) and ideally a pan-tilt video style head is a good idea. The scope is easily small and light enough for air travel. Remember to allow the scope 15-20 minutes to reach temperature equalibrium when going from a warm environment to a cold one, to allow for the best performance from it. The scope can be used as a long camera telephoto lens with adapters but at 1250mm focal length, good light in the daytime and a sturdy tripod is needed for best results.
Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned